Solitude
by Eight More Seconds
Summary: She's all alone in the solitude of the desert in the middle of the night, musing about herself and her love... MarikxOC/MalikxOC, Oneshot


Another little oneshot involving MarikxOC/MalikxOC (still can't get which is hikari), so if you don't like, don't read. It's a bit lengthy, I know, with a lot of detail on the character, but please bear with me – the good part's towards the end.

Yes, it's a different character, but I do have an entire host of them at my disposal which I change to adapt to different fandoms. It's like I have an entire book of them, each detailing their personality and their suited types – but here's not a place to discuss it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any related materials

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**_Solitude _**

Somewhere in the desolate deserts of Egypt, near a sparkling oasis, there was a single cluster of tents, with a few jeeps parked. It was one of the calmest nights in the desert, and there wasn't exactly another sandstorm due for another few week – or so the forecast went. This was the base camp of an expedition into the deserts of Egypt to look for a pharaoh's tomb, led by Ishizu Ishtar.

A single silhouette could be seen, reflected against the pale, Egyptian moon. That figure was evidently a female, her steps barely making a sound as she made her way to a spot under a palm tree near the oasis. The cool, gentle wind blew softly against her face, and a simple linen robe clothed her, hardly clinging to her figure, loose and floaty. She could have been easily mistaken as a ghost.

_Ah, the solitude,_ mused Cynthia River, gazing ruefully at her own reflection. There wasn't anything special about her: black hair that tended to give her a headache in the morning and a pair of dull, gray eyes. It was hard to imagine that this girl would have attracted any attention from anyone.

Her problem was, she had fallen in love with the younger brother of the expedition's leader, Marik Ishtar. He didn't notice her though, and he had a girlfriend already. At least, he acted like it. He kept picking up phone calls and blushing as he listened to the phone. He ignored her too, often making her feel she was invisible in his eyes. Cynthia leant back against the palm tree, feeling the cool wind breeze into her face.

_Who'd want me anyway? After all, I was born the plainest of my family, with my good-for-nothing talent of drawing…_ Cynthia had lost count of the number of times her father had scolded her for drawing and painting in her spare time, often complaining that she couldn't look up to her brothers and sisters, who each had their own more "useful" talent, and hence was "worthy" to bear the River name.

_I wish I had someone to talk to, _Cynthia mused. _I wish someone would actually care and love me for once._ She noticed a family of desert foxes sipping from the oasis, and smiled weakly. _Even animals have their loved ones. Me? _She got off her perch and went towards the foxes, kneeling down and stretching her hand to pet them. They were startled, and escaped. Cynthia bit her lower lip, trying her best not to cry. In the end, she did, sitting down at the oasis' edge and softly crying.

"Cynthia? Is that you?" Marik's voice echoed over the desert. Cynthia buried her face in her hands and tried to hide her tears. She couldn't, and tears leaked out from the gaps of her fingers.

_My family doesn't love me. I don't have any friends. Then why should he love me? _

"You were missing from the tent we shared." Marik said that as a statement. His tone sounded harsh, and it hurt Cynthia like a whip striking her.

"Nobody would notice," mumbled Cynthia, her voice muffled from her tears. Marik sat down beside her, and noticed her face in her hands.

"Look at me," he demanded. Cynthia shook her head, and edged away from him. Marik sat on the edge of Cynthia's dress, so she couldn't escape him.

"Look at me," he repeated, this time more gently. Cynthia made no motion. She felt two strong, rough, yet warm hands peel her own more delicate ones from her face, and her chin was tilted so she was forced to gaze into those lavender pools, throwing her tear-stained face into full view. There was silence for a long time.

"I was just concerned about you." Cynthia didn't say a word, but the moment he released her chin, she turned away, not looking at him.

"I was invisible in your eyes, so why should you care?" Marik didn't say a word, but rather moved slightly closer and put an arm around Cynthia.

"Just because I don't interact with you doesn't mean I don't care for you."

"Besides, don't you have a girlfriend?" Marik's eyes widened.

"Hell no! What made you think that?" Cynthia giggled a bit. The response was quite amusing.

"Well, you were blushing while you were on the phone."

"Oh, that. It was Joey and Yugi trying to give me some dating advice." Despite her current situation, Cynthia was curious.

"Who you're gonna use it on?" Marik went slightly red and he turned away.

"I don't want to talk about it. Say, Cynthia, could you paint a picture of the oasis?" Cynthia's eyes narrowed.

"Don't you dare change the topic, Ishtar. I won't draw or paint the oasis until you tell me who you're going to use the advice on." Marik went even redder.

"Fine." In a fluid movement, he had caught Cynthia in his embrace and planted a loving, yet chaste kiss on her lips. Cynthia went bright red, not believing this was happening, but slowly closed her eyes, enjoying the moment. Then they parted, and both parties were _very _red.

"Does that answer your question?" Cynthia didn't say anything, still dazed.

And they spent the night gazing at the stars in the sky and talking, and for Cynthia, it was like the burden of loneliness was lifted from her, and in her eyes, her life had just brightened up a bit.

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Well, that was it. Hope you enjoyed it… XD

Please review. And yes, you can go as harsh as me as you like, because I still need polishing.


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